Current Affairs for 8 January 2016

Published on Friday, January 08, 2016

By Cheenu Gupta

Government decides to merge Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs with MEA

Union Government has decided to merge Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). This decision has been taken to avoid duplication of work and to improve efficiency in line with Union Government’s broad principle of minimum government, maximum governance.

Sam Pitroda appointed as Technical Advisor of Odisha Government

Sam Pitroda has been appointed as Technology Advisor to the Odisha Government. He has been appointed as the technology adviser for development of telecom, electronics, Information Technology, IT Enabled Services sectors of the state. With this appointment he will get the rank of a Cabinet Minister.

ICICI Bank partners with FINO PayTech for payments bank space

India’s largest private sector lender ICICI Bank has partnered with FINO PayTech to foray into the payments bank space. ICICI Group has purchased about 16 per cent stake in the FINO PayTech making it one of the largest domestic shareholder.

Union Government launches River Information System

India’s first River Information System (RIS) was launched by Union Government facilitate safe and accurate Inland Waterway navigation.

India to grow at 7.8% in year 2016: World Bank Report

The Global Economic Prospect report published recently by the World Bank (WB) has projected a robust 7.8 per cent growth for the Indian economy in the year 2016. It will grow at a 7.9 per cent growth in the next two years 2017 and 2018.

Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, dies

Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, 79, passed away on Thursday at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi. The chief minister breathed his last around 7.30am, education minister and spokesman for government Nayeem Akhter said.

India-France military exercise Shakti-2016 begins

India and France have started their eight-day counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency bilateral military exercise Shakti-2016 in Rajasthan.

Lenovo to kill Motorola Brand

Lenovo is going to kill Motorola brand. All the Motorola products will be renamed as "Lenovo Moto".

Microsoft Surface Pro 4 launched in India

Microsoft has put three configuration options of the Surface Pro 4 up for pre-order. The base variant is priced at Rs.89,990 (Core i5, 4GB RAM, 128GB storage), while the mid-range model costs Rs.1,20,990 (Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage). The top of the line variant will cost Rs.1,44,990 (Core i7, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage). In India, the Surface Pro 4 is up for pre-order with the Core i5 and Core i7 processor options.

The Delhi government must be permitted to continue with the odd-even
vehicle rationing scheme and if these adverse weather conditions
continue, then our recommendation is that the programmer should also be
continued beyond 15 days," said senior advocate Harish Salve.